


Shadows

by orphan_account



Category: Smile For Me (Video Game)
Genre: Bullying, Fluff and Angst, Habit is a cryptid he just doesn’t know it yet, Mental Abuse, Trans Dr. Boris Habit
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-03-28
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:15:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,082
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22727485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Comments: 5
Kudos: 54





	1. Meeting

They had never had many friends, perhaps that’s why it showed up one day.

The young child sat alone in their room, curled up into a ball on their bed. They were alone in every sense of the word; no friends, no support, no love. Especially not from their parents. Well, that wasn’t totally accurate, they had their lily. But people would think they were even more strange for talking to plants. But what did they have to lose? They’d never had many friends.

Another night spent alone meant nothing to them, they simply stared up at their bare ceiling. The night sky outside of the small window in their room was dark and the room was illuminated by the light of the moon. They knew their parents had gone to bed and that they should as well, but their loneliness had taken hold of the, that night. They couldn’t exactly wake them up and they didn’t dare disturb their precious flower, but they craved for someone to talk to. As they stretched her arms outwards, shadows stretched across the walls. Their arms and hands looked distorted and silly and the child smiled for a brief moment. Maybe a shadow could be good enough company? They shifted position, letting the moonlight fall over their back. Their long, curly hair gave the shadow an odd shape and they raised her hand to shyly wave at the dark spot on the wall.  
“Hell-o...” The child whispered into the empty room. They knew they would never get a response, but if they could pretend, that could be enough.

“Hell-ohhh-!” A soft voice whispered back, and for a moment they thought they were hearing things. “Hell-ohh!”

They gasped at the sound of the childlike voice. This wasn’t real, they must be dreaming. The child backed up against the wall, unsure of how to react. Their shadow, however, stayed in place on the wall. They watched silently as two dots, a thick line, and a curved line formed over it to create a crude :-) face.  
“Wh-what r u?” They whispered, clutching his chest in fear.  
“O, please don’ot be scared of me. Im’n just yor shadow.” The thing smiled back. “Do you wanna be friemds?”

This was definitely a dream. Shadows didn’t talk, they didn’t have faces, they didn’t... not follow their person. But something about this “shadow” felt oddly calming. It spoke with his own broken words, but in a deeper voice. A voice that sounded right. Though it was only a line on a shadow, the smile seemed cheerful, almost hopeful.They stared at each other for a long moment. Living child and curious shadow both waiting to hear what the other had to say.

“Do... you have a name?” The child ventured, figuring this couldn’t hurt. Talking to a... living shadow? Their shadow.  
“Hmmn. You knowwww, I do not thimk I hab one? I do not get talked tooo often.”  
“Can I give u a name then?” The child asked, watching with wide eyes as their shadow nodded at the question. “C-can I call you... Boris?”  
“Boriss.” The shadow repeated. “Borissssssss... I’m like it!” They mused, their little face morphing as they let out a giggle. “But! If I amn yuor shadow, you shud have same name? You r Boris too.”  
The child stared back at the shadow silently before a soft smile spread on their face. “Okay, then my name is Boris.”


	2. Breakfast

For the first time in what felt like a very, very long time, they slept soundly after the shadow had disappeared from their room. Upon waking the next morning, they fully expected the strange encounter to have been a dream; a meeting driven out of loneliness deep in their soul. That was until they saw their pale morning shadow waving hello to them. It stretched out across the floor and walked in their footsteps as they trekked down the hall. It mimicked their actions as they brushed their teeth and long hair. It behaved just as any shadow should, only this one could move on its own.  
“——! The hell’re you doing up there?! Get down here!” A thunderous voice boomed from downstairs, demanding attention. The child squeaked in fear, tangling their hair with the brush.  
“C-coming!”

Breakfast was uncomfortably quiet as per usual. Their father sat across from them at the table and busied himself with reading the newspaper. Their mother simply sat and ate. She’d occasionally take a long sip of her black coffee, but never bothered with interacting with either of them. Their child sat wordlessly at the table, nudging at their cold food with a fork. As soon as their parents had come into the picture the shadow had reverted back to its original state. They stared down at the now lifeless shape on the floor beside them.  
“Whatcha staring at?” Their father asked without looking up from their paper.  
“Nothing!” The child gasped in reply, focusing their attention back to the table. They pulled their legs halfway to their chest, rocking a bit on instinct as they tried to calm themself. Even though nothing had happened, their adrenaline was through the roof. Just another day of the same, and school was around the corner. Only now they had a living shadow to worry about.

Bus rides were doable. They weren’t the most comfortable thing in the world but they let them be alone. The kids might be too loud or rough, but they honestly didn’t care. Having an empty seat gave them time to process and collect themself. Time to think about what happened last night. Time to realize that their shadow was in fact alive and that there was nothing normal about this situation in the slightest.  
“...Boris?” They whispered, it was barely audible compared to the rest of the bus, but the shadow must have heard. They flinched as it slipped up next to them on the seat, sitting as if it were a person, only flat.  
“Hell-o friend!” The shadow replied in a quiet voice. “Are you reddy for scool?”  
They sat back, blinking in confusion for a moment as they remembered their conversation from the night before. They were Boris. The elation that came with hearing the name quickly faded as they had to answer the question though.  
“Not reely,” they whispered, shaking their head. “I’m probally going to be made fun of again...”  
They... Boris watched as their shadow friend frowned. “I will not let them hurt u.”


	3. Lunchtime

School wasn’t really the worst thing in the world. Sure, they had bullies and homework and tests, but it wasn’t like they didn’t like to learn new information. One of their favorite pastimes was curling up in a corner of the library with a pile of books on gardening and flowers. They loved to get lost in their books, imagining being surrounded by lush gardens and nature. In their mind nothing could hurt them. They were grown and strong, but gentle and kind. They liked picturing themself as some wonderful florist who could make anyone smile with their work and knowledge of flowers. It was just them, standing proudly in their gloves and sunhat, smiling proudly. Just them... Sure, being alone all the time was hard to deal with, but they supposed that it was better than constantly being made fun of. It wasn’t their fault they didn’t fit in. But at least they had a friend now, if they could call it that.

School was going along just fine that day until the bell signaled that it was time for lunch. They silently dreaded this part of the day, knowing that _she_ would undoubtedly follow her routine once again.  
“Hey, Toothgap!” Well that was an unoriginal one. “Sittin’ all by yourself again?” They flinched backwards, earning a laugh from the girl as she slammed her lunch tray down onto the table.  
“Hell-o Martha...” was all they could manage as the girl sat directly across from them.  
“What’s up in dork-land? Lose any more teeth?”  
They ignored Martha’s rude questioning and began eating their lunch in silence. This had become an ordinary turn of events for the two children, one taking the verbal torment while the other spat poison. They chose to tune her out as she continued to berate them, calling them names and making fun of their appearance. Unbeknownst to both of them, the shadow under the table was becoming agitated.

They retreated to their mind, curling up internally as they wrapped themself up tightly in their thoughts like a cocoon. They didn’t know why they were bullied so much. They didn’t know why their parents didn’t seem to care about them. They didn’t know why they hated their own name. Why were they like this? Were they being punished by the world for being unsatisfied? They just wanted to grow their flowers. Flowers were nice and would always listen. If you listened closely in return, sometimes they would talk back. Flowers understood what people didn’t. They never made fun of broken smiles or used mean nicknames. They were soft and full of life and love. They-  
“-Hey are you even listening?!” Martha slammed her hands down on the table, making them jump.  
“Wh-I-I–“  
“I take the time out of my day to sit here and be nice to a freakshow like you, and you IGNORE me?!”  
Before they could even respond, Martha lunged across the table, throwing her carton of milk in their face, drenching them.

It happened in the blink of an eye. Their shadow snaked it’s way up their legs, coloring them a deep black as it went. It coated their body and even their long hair, shadowy tendrils reaching out to cover up the coppery curls. When it reached their hands, their fingers extended past their original length to become what looked like claws. Martha shrank back in horror and surprise as the person before her was engulfed in shadow. She watched them stand from their seat at the table before letting out a thunderous, deep yell.

**”LEAVE BORIS ALONE!”**


	4. Anxiety

They may have only been vaguely aware of what was truly going on, but they had to admit that this felt nice. Their body felt almost as if it were floating as Boris-their shadow took control. In this moment they were one and the same and they weren’t about to question how. The fear in Martha’s eyes sent a chill up their spine and it put a small, sadistic smile on their face. They were oh so tired of being bullied day in and day out, so seeing someone else be afraid was quite amusing. They watched her fall back onto the floor and scoot backwards as they loomed over her.  
“Wh-what the hell ARE you?!” the girl whimpered with fright. “Who’s ‘Boris’?”  
 **” _I_ am Boris.”** as their voice boomed, they began to become acutely aware of how much attention they were drawing. Eyes turned to look at them. Eyes staring at the weird kid. At the shadowy figure they had become. At the sudden rush of insecurity, Boris decided it was their cue to let their host hide as they effortlessly slid underneath the table. **”Leave me alone!”** they managed to shout with some level of dwindling confidence. They had decided now that this wasn’t as fun anymore.

Martha watched in dumbfounded shock as the wimpy kid she enjoyed picking on transformed into this... _shadow thing_ right before her eyes. —— didn’t have an assertive bone in — body as far as she knew. And — certainly didn’t have the power to turn into some fearsome monster. Some shadow demon named... Boris? She watched in awe as more and more kids turned to watch the unbelievable event unfold in the cafeteria. She watched as Boris ducked underneath the table and still managed to look like a scared little kid despite looking like a living shadow. Sure Martha knew that vampires and werewolves were real, but she’d never seen a demon or whatever this was before. 

“Why do not you like this?” Boris’ voice echoed inside of their head. Their voice was filled with concern and confusion but did little to calm their nerves in this anxiety filled moment.  
“Too many people. What’s going on? I don’t understand.”  
“I took over. I want Martha to stop bullying you.”  
“Took over?” They took a moment to look at their hands which now looked like pitch black claws. Their edges softened and seemed to blend into the shadows around their body.  
“We are thee same, Boris. We are shadow.”  
“N-no, I’m human...”  
“No,” they could feel their head shake without their consent. “you’re are not. We are Boris.”  
Their mind was racing a mile a minute as they processed the information they were being given. They weren’t human? Well that made their ability to speak to plants make some sense they supposed. But this was too much! They needed to be alone, they needed to be in control.

The lights flickered and children screamed as a pitch black shadow shot out from underneath the table, skimming along the linoleum tiles in the cafeteria. They needed to know what was going on. They shot through the hallways and into the nearest bathroom. They slammed the door open and rushed to the mirror, gripping it so tightly that miniature cracks formed underneath the tips of their clawlike fingers. They gasped at their appearance. They were a spindly, tall wisp of a shadow with claws and a face. They turned side to side as they took in their new form. They still appeared to be three-dimensional despite being dark enough to look like a flat image from every angle. Bright orange eyes stared back at them with fear and curiosity.  
“C-can I turne back-?” No sooner had the words left their mouth than they found themselves back to normal. Their shadow whipped through the air behind them as it was dispelled from their physical form. “O-oh.”  
“I did not meen to scare you Boris.” The shadow frowned and placed a hand gently on their shoulder. “But I will not watch you be bullied.”


	5. Lotus

Hiding in the bathroom for the rest of lunch and cleaning themself up was much easier than facing the rest of the school. They wanted to hide; they wished they could simply sink through the floor and cease to be. Sure they were back to normal, but what _was_ “normal” anymore? Boris had just dropped a bomb on their already fragile mental state. They weren’t human? If they weren’t human, then what were they?  
“...Boris?” They asked sheepishly, peering down at their shadow on the floor. “Wh-what are y—w-we?”  
“Hm. Shadow demon.” The response came with a wispy tendril of an arm snaking it’s way up from the floor to pat them affectionately. They wanted to believe Boris, they wanted to trust in their shadowy friend, but they didn’t want to accept what they’d been told.  
“No...”  
“Yes?” Boris tilted their head to the side with mock confusion.  
“No! I’m human! I’mve been human all my life, so...”  
“Littol Boris, you have been part shadow all along.”  
“The-then! ...Where were u?”  
“I didm’t want to friten you. But Boris needed a friend.”

All eyes were on them as classes resumed for the day. Not a single child wanted to sit next to them, preferring instead to observe them from afar as if they were some dangerous animal. The few kids in the seats around them scooted their chairs as far away as they could, scared of what might happen if the shadow monster returned. Their teachers remained blissfully ignorant, unaware of that afternoon’s previous events. As class dragged on for what felt like an eternity, they found themself staring out the window of the classroom as they drummed a little rhythm on the top of their desk with their pointed fingers. Their gaze led them to the flower garden outside. The vibrant yellows and pinks put a smile on their face and left them to wonder about what the exact kinds of flowers there were down there.

“——, —— pay attention!” The loud bark of the teacher in front of the classroom made them jump. Hearing their name be called so harshly made them want to hide again. “——, we are beginning our work on group projects. I expect you to find a partner if you don’t wish to be stuck working by yourself!”  
“Y-yes ma’am...” came their quiet reply.  
They looked around the room and surely enough all of the other children had paired off in groups of two. They chattered amongst themselves happily without a care in the world as they worked together. They hated to admit it, but they were jealous. They hadn’t expected the teacher to shout again however, and they jumped, putting their arms over their head. To their relief, the teacher wasn’t directing her anger at them this time. Instead the attention was all on a boy in the back corner of the room. Had he always been there? They didn’t recognize him, but he must have been in the back all this time. They gasped softly and turned their head as they realized the boy was looking at them. Why were they so nervous now? It wasn’t like people had been staring at them all day. It wasn’t weird for him to be staring in the first place. It wasn’t-  
“H-hello-?”  
“Eek!” They squeaked, hiding underneath their arms again.   
“Oh! I-I’m sorry! I uh, I didn’t mean to scare you! I just...”  
They slowly lifted their head as their panicked heart calmed down. It was the boy.  
“...What do yuo want?”  
“Umm...!” He faltered, wringing his hands together. “My-my name is Kamal. And...”  
“Kamal?” They repeated out loud, tilting their head. “I’m have never herd that name before.”  
“Y-yeah, I get that a lot. It means lotus in Hindi.”  
“Lotus?” Their eyes widened and they sat up a bit more straight. “Like the flower?”  
“Yeah, like the flower.” Kamal scratched the back of his head anxiously. “So um, the teacher wanted me to get a partner, and you’ve been sitting here all by yourself. Do you not have one—a partner?”  
“No,” they shook their head. “I think everyone is scared of me after today...”  
“Scared of you? Why?”  
“You saw what happeneded at lunch... I’m a m-... monster...”  
“So?” Kamal questioned, crossing his arms. They found themself looking up at him in surprise. “We’re classmates with werewolves and vampires. Why does that make you any more scary?”


End file.
